Cajuns - Orientation

Identification.
The Cajuns are a distinct cultural group of people who have lived
mainly in south-central and Southwestern Louisiana since the late
eighteenth century. In the past, because of their Acadian heritage,
residential localization, unique language, and Roman Catholicism, it was
relatively easy to distinguish Cajuns from other groups in Lousiana.
Today, their identity is less clear. It usually applies to those who are
descended from Acadians who migrated in the late 1770s and early 1800s
from Canada to what is now Louisiana, and/or live or associate with a
Cajun life-style characterized by rural living, family-centered
communities, the Cajun French language, and Roman Catholicism. Cajuns in
Louisiana today are a distinct cultural group, separate from the
Acadians of Nova Scotia. Like the Appalachians and Ozarkers, they are
considered by outsiders to be a traditional folk Culture with attention
given to their arts and crafts, food, music, and dance. The name
"Cajuns" is evidently an English mispronunciation of
"Acadians." Cajun and Black Creole Culture share a number
of common elements, some of which are discussed in the entry on Black
Creoles of Louisiana.

Location.
In 1971 the Louisiana legislature designated twenty-two parishes as
Acadiana: Acadia, Ascension, Assumption, Avoyelles, Calcasieu, Cameron,
Evangeline, Iberia, Iberville, Jefferson Davis, Lafayette, Lafourche,
Pointe Coupee, St. Charles, St. James, St. John, St. Landry, St. Martin,
St. Mary, Terrebonne, Vermilion, and West Baton Rouge. This region
includes coastal marshes, swamps, prairies, and levee land. In recent
decades, as the region has experienced economic development and
population shifts, the boundaries of Acadiana have blurred. And the
Cajuns are not the only residents of these parishes, which include
non-Cajun Whites of various ethnic backgrounds, African-Americans, Black
Creoles, and others.

Demography.
In the 1970s there were about 800,000 Cajuns in Louisiana. After
Acadians began arriving in Louisiana, perhaps as early as 1756, the
population increased rapidly, from about 6,000 in 1810 to 35,000 in 1815
to 270,000 in 1880.

Linguistic Affiliation.
Language use by Cajuns is a complex topic, with the relationship
between the speakers and the social context often determining what
language is spoken. Cajun French is the language commonly associated
with the Cajun culture, though many Cajuns no longer speak it fluently
and its use has declined markedly in the younger generation. Older
Cajuns speak Cajun French in the home and with other Cajuns. Cajun
French differs from standard French in the use of some archaic forms of
pronunciation, the inclusion of various loan words from English,
American Indian, Spanish, and African languages, and a simplified
grammar. Cajuns usually use English as the contact language and as the
Domestic language in an increasing number of homes. In some homes and
communities, Creole French is spoken as well.

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